Biogeophysical Signatures of Microbial Natural Gas Accumulation

Natural gas is produced by subsurface thermogenic and biogenic processes. Although the contribution of microbial processes in the formation of methane gas accounts for more than 20% of the global natural gas resources, microbial contribution to natural gas accumulation is rarely considered in geophysical exploration. Thus, a laboratory study has been undertaken to investigate the possibility of monitoring and detecting the microbial formation of methane by electrical potential (EP) technique. Distinct EP observed from acetoclasitc and hydrotropic methanogenesis suggests that the detection and monitoring of biogenic formation of methane is possible by employing biogeophysical techniques.